offense
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offense
In sports, especially in American team sports such as American football or basketball, the attacking part of a team whose goal is to score points. The opposite is the defense.
Die Offense des Teams war heute extrem stark und erzielte mehrere Touchdowns.
The team's offense was extremely strong today and scored several touchdowns.
Although 'Offense' comes from English, in German it only has the sports meaning 'Angriff' (offense/attack). The English meanings 'insult' or 'crime' are translated in German as 'Beleidigung' or 'Straftat'.
Die Offense der Gastmannschaft konnte kein einziges Tor erzielen.
The visiting team's offense could not score a single goal.
The word 'Offense' is used almost exclusively in the context of American team sports such as American football or basketball. In German soccer, people usually say 'Angriff' (attack) or 'Sturm' (forward line) instead.
Der neue Spieler soll die Offense des Basketballteams verstärken.
The new player is supposed to strengthen the basketball team's offense.
Common combinations are 'in der Offense spielen' (to play on offense), 'eine starke/schwache Offense haben' (to have a strong/weak offense), or 'die Offense des Gegners stoppen' (to stop the opponent's offense).
Unser Team hat eine sehr gute Offense, aber die Verteidigung ist schwach.
Our team has a very good offense, but the defense is weak.
attack
In sports, both words can refer to a team’s offensive part or its offensive play. Angriff is the more general German term for offensive actions or the attacking unit. Offense is the established term, especially in American team sports, for the entire attacking unit.
Unsere Offense erzielte im zweiten Viertel zwei wichtige Punkte.
Our offense scored two important points in the second quarter.
Unser Angriff erzielte im zweiten Viertel zwei wichtige Punkte.
Our attack scored two important points in the second quarter.
